Dooley’s Dozen: 12 important facts about Florida’s game vs. USF
The Gator Nation is still mourning the impact of the soul-stealing loss to Kentucky, but there is another game to be played Saturday against a team that would love to make Florida fans more miserable.
Nobody is saying the Bulls can or will, but USF certainly will play with a little bit of a chip as all schools from the state do when they play the mighty Gators.
Saturday night will be more about Florida’s improvement than anything else. South Florida is a 24-point underdog.
Florida fans are wondering about the promise to get them off this decade-long and disappointing roller-coaster ride. Two games in, and you can hear the click-click-click as the Gators’ car tries to climb back up the hill.
South Florida is an interesting story. So, let’s get to it with the latest Dooley’s Dozen which is, of course, 12 things you need to know about the University of South Florida.
The Bulls are kind of stuck in the American Conference
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USF has done everything right in trying to make itself look sexy to the Big 12, but the league dealt a severe blow to the school by taking UCF and leaving USF behind. Tampa is the 12th biggest TV market in America, but perhaps the fact this is only the 26th season of football at USF was a factor.
They are making an effort with buildings
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Sometime this fall, the team will move into a brand new $22 million indoor performance facility and has plans for an on-campus stadium to be occupied in 2026. (Playing in an NFL stadium is overrated if it’s 25 minutes from campus.) They haven’t broken ground on the stadium or said how more than $250 million will be financed, but stay tuned.
USF hopes the third time's the charm
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The Bulls have played Florida twice before, losing both. One was last year in Tampa (42-20, UF) when the Gators had 666 total yards and [autotag]Anthony Richardson[/autotag] went for 115 including an 80-yard run. The other was a 38-14 Florida win in 2010 after the score was tied at seven at halftime. [autotag]Jeff Demps[/autotag] went for 139 yards in that one.
The one thing USF has is experience
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It may or may not translate on the field this season and so far it has not. USF has nine returning starts on offense (87 starts total) and eight returning starts (75 starts) on defense. It’s one of the most experienced teams in the short history of the program.
The head coach is a familiar name
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Billy Napier talked Monday about his relationship with Jeff Scott and his father Brad, the former FSU assistant who was nine games under .500 in five years as head coach at South Carolina. Napier referred to the elder Scott as “a mentor.”
USF fans wonder if they have a clone
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His dad was a really good assistant, but as a head coach, he was not good. Jeff Scott did a heck of a job at Clemson, but is 4-19-1 so far at USF with only one FBS win (over Temple) in his third season. The Bulls beat Howard last week 42-20, but were handled in the first game by BYU 50-21.
Defense is a problem
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We know it is early in the season, but USF ranks 126th (out of 131 schools) in rushing defense and 125th in total defense. Despite losing to the Bulls last week, Howard still managed 24 first downs. USF has also allowed 35 points a game.
The portal has potential
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This is the third straight Saturday (and next week will be the fourth straight) that Florida has played a quarterback who started at another school. Gerry Bohanon was the starter at Baylor before getting hurt late in the season. He lost his starting job and transferred to USF where he has thrown for 391 yards in two games.
Watch out for No. 21
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Last year, Brian Battie became only the second consensus All-American in school history (George Selvie was the other). He made the team as a kick returner, but the diminutive Battie (5-foot-8, 165 pounds) also lines up at tailback and has 107 yards on only seven carries. Most of that yardage came against Howard.
More on the portal
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All told, USF has 15 players who came via the transfer portal in their two-deep. Scott figured a mixture of veteran players and older newcomers would meld nicely and it still might. But so far, USF has been OK on offense and terrible on defense.
Another guy to watch
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Wide receiver Xavier Weaver led the team with 41 catches last year and leads again with 12 for 170 yards so far this year. There is also this – in two games, USF has yet to score a touchdown through the air.
Finally, an unranked opponent
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The 1-1 Bulls are not ranked in any polls out there which is a first for Anthony Richardson. The Florida quarterback has had three career starts, all against ranked teams. And Florida is playing its first unranked team this season.
USF once achieved No. 2 in the first BCS Rankings (the season ended up in the Sun Bowl) and have not been ranked since Charlie Strong’s first season at USF in 2007.
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